Love and surprises
by rizumamu
Summary: Boxing Fan throws a Halloween party for Japanese boxers. Various pairings, yaoi, PG. Written from Volg's POV.
1. Chapter 1

First part of this fic was written for Volg's birthday.

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* * *

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**LOVE AND SURPRISES**

Since I had done so well in America, I finally had the chance to return to Japan. And on top of that, I knew I also had the chance to spend my birthday with my dearest friend in the whole world. It turned out to be the best birthday I had had ever since I was a child and spent my birthdays with my late mother. In my heart I hoped she had been there with us and seen how well I was doing in my life, how happy I had become although I had had to leave Russia and started all over in another part of the world.

However, there was yet more to come, something I hadn't expected to be a part of, when I had flown to Japan during the last week of October. The following day, right after my birthday, was Halloween and according to Makunouchi there was going to be a special party in the evening. He brought it up again during our morning jog.

"Of course Volg-san can come, too. The invitation says that I'm allowed to go to the party with a companion. So far I haven't asked anyone so I think it's completely alright that you come with me, Volg-san," he told me.

"I am glad. Let's go together!" I agreed right away. It wasn't because I would have liked parties but because I wanted to be with him. So if he was going to go, naturally I wanted to go, too.

"The only condition is that the guests have to wear a costume…"

"Because it is Halloween? I do not know much…"

The way Makunouchi looked at me right then revealed that he didn't seem to know much about the matter, either. However, we still decided to go to the party together because it truly sounded like it was going to be a lot of fun. And with the help of Makunouchi's mother we got our costumes ready before we had to leave.

-x-o-x-o-x-o-x-o-x-

"You two look very cute. Have a good time, boys!" Makunouchi's mother said cheerfully and waved at us when we were getting into the taxi that had come to pick us up.

"Yeees!" Makunouchi shouted and waved his paw.

"Your mother has talent. Made these costumes for us," I said looking at my own paws when the other back door was shut and the taxi started off.

"Ha ha… She probably couldn't think of anything else. I hope you're not bothered," Makunouchi turned to look at me and looked slightly apologetic.

"No, no, this is good," I said smiling back at him.

"The ears look really nice," Makunouchi mumbled suddenly blushing a little. I could only see it because I was sitting so close to him in the back seat of the taxi.

"Yours look better. Grey ears and red hair, looks strange," I remarked patting my other ear that peeped through my hair.

"But Volg-san could only be a wolf, right?"

"Maybe you are right. The others, what kind of costumes do they have?"

"I really don't know anything about that. Takamura-san and the others didn't want to tell about their outfits at all. I wonder if I can even recognize them…"

"Soon we see them. And have fun, yes?" I just couldn't stop smiling when I was looking at him. Although he seemed quite hesitant, he must have been looking forward to the party - he still hadn't lost that boyish joy and it made me very happy.

"Yes. I can't wait to see how many people are joining the party. But most of all I'm happy that you had the chance to come, too, Volg-san."

"I am also happy," I said and I really meant it from the bottom of my heart.

-x-o-x-o-x-o-x-o-x-

As far as I knew the party was arranged by a magazine called _Boxing Fan_. Personally I couldn't quite understand why they had decided to have a Halloween party for Japanese boxers but it sounded like something very interesting. I felt privileged having the chance to join them even though it had been a long time since I had boxed in Japan.

"Here we are."

I couldn't remember the word in Japanese so I just pointed my other paw at the lights and other things scattered around the entrance of the venue. I didn't know the place but it certainly wasn't a place where anyone would have been boxing.

"Yes, they have put an effort to the decorations. They look really nice. Now I really want to see what it's like inside." Makunouchi was getting excited.

"Scary?" I had to ask him for fun.

"Boxers aren't cowards. And since you're a wolf and I'm a werewolf, we can't be afraid of anything, right?" He was trying to clench his paws but it seemed to be much harder than he could have thought.

"Yes," I said nodding, and smiled as much at him as his sweetness.

We went through the front door and Makunouchi showed his invitation to the person who was standing by the door letting the guests inside. Kindly and discreetly he explained to that person that I was with him. We both were welcomed warmly and guided to the cloakroom where we left our overcoats. After that we walked through the lobby towards the hall full of festivities we had already heard when we had entered the building. But then all of a sudden someone showed up right in front of us. I didn't recognize who he was but Makunouchi startled so badly that he pounced and hid behind my back.

"My my, if it isn't Volg!" the man wearing a vampire costume said and shook my paw. "With paws and a tail! How about your fangs? Are you taking good care of them and keeping them sharp?"

I didn't quite understand what he was talking about so I just laughed confusedly.

"Ah… Fujii-san, don't scare us like that," Makunouchi said sighing and peeked behind me.

"Makunouchi! So it's you who brought this wolf to our party? But it's great to see him here. I'm sure that Sendou wants to see you, too. Both of you."

"Sendou-san is also here?" Makunouchi asked cheerily.

"Of course. He was very excited about this party. And… Just let me tell you that it's certainly not difficult to find him."

"Good, we have to go and see him. How about Takamura-san and the others, have they also arrived?"

"I'm sure you'll get to see them, too. By all means, go and look for them. As far as I know, Itagaki was already looking for you a little earlier… But most of all, don't forget to enjoy the catering and the special punch made for this party," Fujii told and winked.

"Interesting," was everything I managed to say as I tried to follow their conversation.

"Volg-san, let's go and see the others," Makunouchi said then taking my paw in his and so I walked beside him into the hall.

-x-o-x-o-x-o-x-o-x-

When we entered the hall, we noticed that there were already such a lot of people that neither one of us didn't have any idea which way to go first. Therefore we just stood still and kept on hesitating until we heard a loud voice.

"Ippoooo~!"

We turned to the direction where that call had come from.

"That is…?"

"It has to be Aoki-san. Let's go and ask him where the others are."

I just nodded and followed Makunouchi through the crowd towards a man who was wearing a pumpkin on his head. It looked quite funny to me.

"Looks like there are even more animals in the zoo," Aoki commented when we were in better range of audibility. "But anyway, now that you're here, you have to let Tomiko tell you your fortune."

"Tomiko-san is also here?" Makunouchi looked surprised.

I didn't even know who they were talking about but it wasn't hard to guess when they both turned to the table that was right next to where we were standing. On the other side of the table I saw a woman in a black cape placing cards on the table.

"Ippo-kun, you have arrived! This time I'll tell your fortune properly! But it will be about something else than boxing so you won't mind, right?" she said raising her head and moved her eyes from the cards to look at us.

"Tomiko-san, hello! Last time was quite a troublesome moment, but right now, I really don't mind at all."

"Alright, Ippo! Sit here and wait for the result," Aoki encouraged him showing the chair on our side of the table.

Makunouchi turned to look at me, as though asking for my permission to go for it. Although I didn't quite understand what was going to happen, I still didn't have anything against it so I just smiled and nodded at him. He smiled back at me and then he sat opposite to that woman who looked a little like a witch in her cape. She collected the cards from the table and mixed them up carefully before she slowly began to place them one by one back on the table. I didn't have the slightest idea what they could have meant, and when I glanced at Makunouchi I thought he must have felt the same.

"Hmmmm…" she mumbled staring at the cards and moving her fingers gently over them.

"So what is the result this time?" Aoki was the first one of us who dared to ask the question.

"I must say I am rather speechless. But since the cards don't lie, all I can say is this," she began with a somewhat wavering voice and paused for a few seconds. "_Tonight promises you wholehearted love but you are also in for a big surprise, the kind that you won't forget in a long time._"

"Ooh," was all I could say. Makunouchi himself couldn't say a single word.

"What the hell is with that? Didn't you tell _me_ the same thing?" a deeper voice came right behind us, and when we turned around to see who it was, we were faced with the devil himself.

"Ta... Takamura-san!" Makunouchi was startled again. I must admit I was quite surprised myself. After all, he was a big man and besides, his costume was very convincing.

"But Takamura-san, no matter how much it is the same message, the cards are completely different," Aoki said pointing his finger at the cards.

"Yes, Masaru is right," Tomiko said nodding.

"That kind of a thing is just boring," Takamura claimed with a loud snort.

"What is boring?" yet another person joined the conversation.

"So old man, you showed up, too," Takamura said to the man who was now standing in front of us all.

"Date-san!" Makunouchi got up from his chair and bowed to the man in a samurai costume.

"What are you youngsters up to?" he asked us before he noticed the cards on the table. "Ah, that kind of a thing. May I try it, too?"

"If Date-san is going to get his fortune told, then I want to know mine as well," announced a pirate who had been standing behind Date a while ago.

"One at a time, please," Aoki requested on Tomiko's behalf. She had already picked up the cards and was mixing them up again for her next opponent.

"Go ahead, Date-san," Makunouchi was already urging the former champion to sit at the table.

"Thanks," Date said sitting down but then turned back to look at the pirate. "Wait for your turn, Okita. This won't take long, right?"

"Okita-san too! I'm sorry I didn't notice…" Makunouchi was now bowing slightly apologetically to the pirate.

"It's the costumes, I know. But let's see what kind of a fortune Date-san will have," Okita said excitedly.

"No need to go easy on the old man," Takamura jeered maliciously. "His fortune has already been told, anyway."

"Takamura-san, stop saying such things," Makunouchi asked and his voice revealed just how irritated he was.

After that we all fell silent and waited for the result as Tomiko had placed another set of cards on the table in front of her.

"What can I say… This is becoming mysterious," she started as she stared at the cards. "Although there are a lot of cards in the pack, it seems that it is _possible_ that even something like this can happen."

"What are the cards telling then?" Date asked clearly interested in the result.

"_Tonight promises you wholehearted love but you are also in for a big surprise, the kind that you won't forget in a long time,_" was what Tomiko said, the exact same thing she had told Makunouchi only a while ago.

"Hmph, that's what she told me. And Ippo's fortune was also the same. How boring," Takamura commented immediately.

"But you can't deny that it sounds really good," Date said grinning at Takamura and stood up to let Okita have his turn.

Once again Tomiko mixed up the cards and got ready to tell the fortune to yet another boxer. When the chosen cards were on the table, she opened her eyes even wider than they had been a moment ago.

"What is it? Did the message change this time?" Okita asked worriedly.

"No, it didn't. There is no way to explain this but you all seem to have the same fortune, the cards show love and a big surprise. Both of which should happen tonight," she replied frantically.

"Excuse me," I said then. "I… I am not Japanese. I was not invited. Just a guest."

"You want to try it, too, Volg-san?" Makunouchi asked me.

"Yes. I want to know." Deep inside I had begun to think that it would be terrible if I was the only one without love and a surprise.

Okita let me sit in the chair and then it was my turn. I didn't expect to be so nervous because of such a trivial thing but I couldn't help it. I could hardly breathe before all of the chosen cards were visible. Of course I couldn't understand what they meant but it didn't seem that bad to me.

"Tomiko, what is Volg's fortune?" Aoki asked on my behalf since I couldn't say a word.

"Volg-kun…" she began.

"Yes?" I managed to say.

"You can also expect wholehearted love and a big surprise tonight," she said very gently and smiled at me.

"That is so ridiculous. A complete waste of time. Old man, let's go and get a drink," Takamura stated with a seemingly annoyed tone.

"Ha ha, try to have some fun," Date replied grinning widely again. "Otherwise _you_'ll end up being the boring one. But anyway, we'll go now and have some more of that delicious punch. Enjoy yourselves, youngsters, and see you later."

Date lifted his hand and walked after Takamura towards the buffet.

"You should try it, too," Okita remarked straightening the big hat he was wearing. "Thank you for the fortunetelling." Holding his hand on his hat, he bowed to Tomiko and followed the older men.

"Us… Too?" I turned to look at Makunouchi but he didn't get the chance to reply because someone was calling him.

"Senpai! Don't go anywhere!" A young wizard moved quickly towards us.

"Manabu-kun, you had something to tell me?"

"Senpai, did you let her…" Itagaki started with suspicion.

"We all did," Makunouchi replied honestly.

"I shouldn't have let her do that," Itagaki grumbled.

"Why's that?" I was at least as surprised as Makunouchi was but I let him do the talking.

"First she told my fortune and then I insisted that Mashiba-san should get his fortune told as well… It was a big mistake."

"Ooh, Mashiba-san… Is also here?" The expression on Makunouchi's face changed again.

"Of course he is. Right over there."

We turned to look at the direction that Itagaki had pointed at. I had heard about that person, but seeing him like that for the first time… It was pretty bad, especially for a first impression. But I noticed it might have been even worse for Makunouchi.

"It… It suits him," Makunouchi stuttered and all of a sudden tugged my sleeve with his other paw.

"He is… Looks scary," I said still looking at the tall man, who looked very much like the real grim reaper in his costume and with the scythe that just might have been a real one.

"Ha ha ha, Kimura-san ran away, too. He didn't want to speak to Mashiba-san at all," Itagaki laughed.

"That coward!" Aoki laughed as well.

"You just don't understand…" Makunouchi mumbled so quietly that only I could hear it. He must have been afraid and I couldn't find a reason why to blame him for that.

"Anyway, Tomiko-san's fortune was only about love and surprises. Something like that can't replace tricks or treats," Itagaki continued. "That's what Halloween is really about, right?"

"So I have heard," I said.

"Volg-san! You've come back! Have you been to Halloween parties in America?" Itagaki asked cheerily.

"Not really. My first time," I replied honestly. "Not enough time."

"That is understandable. Every time it's possible, senpai watches your matches. You're doing really well, Volg-san."

"Thank you," was everything I could say because Itagaki's words made me feel kind of embarrassed. If it had been possible, I would have watched Makunouchi's matches but I didn't even know if Asian bouts were broadcasted on the TV. Later on I would have to ask about it from my American friends. But my thoughts were instantly interrupted.

"Makunouchi! 'Ere ya're!"

Even I knew that voice although it had been years since I had heard it.

"Sendou-san, good evening," Makunouchi greeted him and bowed again. I only nodded at him.

"Hmph, always acting like dat. Oh, lookie, wolves. I'm a tiger. Cool, eh?" Sendou boasted with a wide grin on his face.

"An' I'm a zombie," said someone who was standing beside him.

"Suits you," Itagaki commented and laughed some more.

"Takeshi-san chose dis costume for me," the zombie said with obvious proud in his voice.

I hoped I wasn't meant to say anything.

"So Makunouchi, ya've brought da wolf wiv ya. How're ya doing?" Sendou turned to look at me. "Are yer fangs still sharp?"

"Ha ha ha! How about yours, Sendou?" I couldn't help but laugh at him. The way he was speaking to me brought back a lot of memories from the past. And on top of all that, he really was dressed as a tiger from top to toe. He looked kind of cute. And very much at home in that furry and stripy costume. Makunouchi and I had just ears, paws and tails, other than that we had normal clothes on.

"Mine're as sharp as eva," Sendou replied still grinning and it made me notice how his teeth were showing.

"Takeshi-san is da best in Japan," the zombie boasted then placing his hand on Sendou's shoulder.

"Say whatever you want, Hoshi. Senpai has still won him twice," Itagaki said obviously trying to tease the zombie.

"And you haven't won him, either, Itagaki," said yet another young man who seemed to be dressed as a skeleton.

"I thought you weren't even going to come. Where have you been?" Itagaki said to the newcomer.

"I was looking for you but it wasn't easy in this crowd. But then I heard Sendou-san's voice and thought I'd come to see what he's up to," the skeleton explained.

"Ummm… I don't think you have been introduced… So, here is Volg-san who came to the party from America," Makunouchi said introducing me to the younger men I hadn't met before.

"I've heard a lot 'bout ya from Takeshi-san. I'm Hoshi, nice to meet ya, Volg-san," the zombie introduced himself and I shook his hand with my paw.

"Nice to meet you," I said.

"Volg-san, it's a pleasure to meet you. My name is Imai," the skeleton said and shook his hand with my paw.

"Nice to meet you, Imai," I said and then all of a sudden Sendou put his arm around my shoulder.

"Now dat everyone's 'ere, why don't we go an' enjoy dis party? And show Volg how we have fun, right?" Sendou asked looking at us all. "Have y'all tasted da punch yet? It's really good, yanno."

"Takamura-san and the others already went to get a refill," Makunouchi mentioned.

"Dat's bad, really bad I'd say. Can't let 'em drink it all. Betta go before it's all gone. Follow me," Sendou said and gestured that he was going to show the way.

"Why not. I could go and get a glass for Mashiba-san as well," Itagaki decided and began to walk right after Imai.

"But isn't Kumi-chan here?" Makunouchi asked looking surprised.

"No. Tomiko told me she had a shift tonight so Mashiba must have come here alone," Aoki replied. "But why don't we go and see what kind of a buffet they have. And I want to have some of that punch, too."

At that point Tomiko had put her cards away and stood up.

"Lead the way, Masaru," she said to Aoki.

"Leave it to me!" he said and they began to walk away from us with linked arms.

"Makunouchi…" I called his name wondering what he was thinking about. Perhaps he was shocked that his other close friend hadn't come to the party.

"Volg-san, I want to try that punch," he said to me with a very serious look on his face. "What do you think, is it something like _bloody Mary_?"

"Ha ha ha, we have to go and see," I said smiling at him.

He put his paw in mine and we began to walk after the others. Since it was easy to see Aoki's pumpkin, we only needed to follow it not to get lost in the crowd.

While we were walking, I couldn't help but think that somehow Aoki's reply had made me feel a little relieved. Even though I probably shouldn't have, because for a short moment Makunouchi had seemed a little depressed, and I really didn't want him to have such an expression when we were supposed to party together. I wanted him to have fun and enjoy his time. But I couldn't help the selfish feeling that burnt within me - I wanted him to be with me, I wanted him for myself while I was in Japan.

-x-o-x-o-x-o-x-o-x-

-to be continued-


	2. Chapter 2

Second part of this fic I finished for Makunouchi's birthday.

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**LOVE AND SURPRISES**

After we finally reached the buffet, we drank the punch and ate some of the snacks together with the others. Everything tasted very good and I noticed that I was laughing a lot more than I had laughed lately. It had certainly been a good thing to come back to Japan, even if it was only for a while.

I was deep in my thoughts when I heard someone calling my name.

"Volg-san, are you alright?" It was Makunouchi.

"Yes. I am fine. What is it?"

"I better not drink any more of the punch. I think I'm already becoming a little tipsy," he said with a big, warm smile on his face.

"Me too," I admitted. I must have drunk at least 4 glasses of it because it was so good. Just like we had been told.

"Why don't we go for a walk and look around?" he asked me then.

I nodded as a reply.

As we walked sluggishly through the crowd of people to the other side of the hall, Makunouchi held my paw in his again. The way we were moving on must have seemed quite unstable but it didn't matter, it was completely fine because we had each other to rely on.

"Oh, I had almost forgotten!" Makunouchi shouted all of a sudden and turned to look at me.

"What is it, Makunouchi?"

"Although we've been here for some time, we haven't seen Kimura-san yet. I'd like to see his costume, too," he replied.

"That is true."

"But I wonder where he is. After all, he wasn't with Aoki-san and the others…"

"Maybe he ran away. That scary man," I remembered incidentally.

"Did he go back home…" Makunouchi seemed disappointed.

Right then I noticed Takamura who was talking with someone with a loud voice.

"Ask Takamura, maybe he knows," I suggested.

Makunouchi nodded at me and we walked up to Takamura to ask him about Kimura's whereabouts.

"Ah, that coward. He must have been upstairs this whole time," was the nonchalant reply we got.

"Upstairs?" we asked simultaneously.

"The stairs are right over there. There's nothing interesting, though. Just some ridiculously loud music and a dance floor packed with boxers who don't even know how to dance," Takamura explained pointing his finger to the direction where the bottom of the stairs was.

"That's why he's there! Of course he's there! Let's go, Volg-san!" Makunouchi said enthusiastically tugging my sleeve.

I followed him to ascend the stairs beside him. The illumination upstairs was clearly dimmer than downstairs but because there were bright spotlights here and there, it wasn't hard to have a look at the people who were partying and having a good time on the dance floor.

"I still can't see him. I don't know anything about his costume so I can't find him," Makunouchi complained.

"Why don't we… We can dance as well," I suggested trying to be discreet. "We get close to everyone."

"You're right. But I don't know…" Makunouchi hesitated.

"It doesn't matter. We dance now," I said squeezing his paw in mine gently and led him towards the dance floor.

In the end he wasn't bothered although I had dragged him with me rather selfishly and asked him to dance, regardless of the fact that we both were somewhat tipsy. Perhaps that was the exact reason why it was so much fun to move around, move to the rhythm of the music although we didn't even know the song that was playing, or at least it wasn't familiar to me.

Makunouchi laughed joyfully when I spun him around and I laughed with him. We almost forgot why we had begun to dance. But when the next song began to play, I happened to notice a certain man with very smooth moves who was obviously dancing with someone dressed as a black cat.

"Makunouchi, is that Kimura?" I asked pointing at the man covered in bandages.

"Is that… A mummy?" Makunouchi wondered when he looked at the man.

"I'm not sure."

"That person does look quite like Kimura-san, nonetheless. And he's dancing with that cat, right?"

"It seems so."

"Did Kimura-san bring his girlfriend? He hasn't even mentioned that to us!" Makunouchi's eyes widened and he stopped moving for a while.

"After this song… Go and talk to him?" I was being selfish again but I really wanted to dance with him for a little longer.

"That's a good idea. He looks so happy. And that cat is kind of cute, truly as nimble as a real cat," he said and grinned.

"Yes, I agree," I said and made him spin a few more times until another song started to play.

Dancing was very nice but for some reason we both seemed to feel a little weary when we walked towards the mummy. The reason might have been the paws we were wearing on our feet instead of shoes, but it could have also been the amount of alcohol we had consumed. Neither one of us was used to drinking, I knew at least that much. Working so hard as a boxer didn't really leave time for other things, and personally it didn't matter to me even if I had had to give up on such stimulants. However, days like these it was natural to take a drink or a few to get into the mood, or have the kind of courage that didn't have anything to do with boxing.

Yet again I had sunk into my thoughts but I came round when I heard Makunouchi's cheerful voice beside me.

"Kimura-san!"

"Oh Ippo! And Volg! Whaddya know, it certainly is a surprise to see you!" the mummy greeted us.

"Did Tomiko-san…?" Makunouchi started.

"I heard about that. But yes, she told me the same thing. That's gotta be some sort of a Halloween curse or… Actually, it's more like a good thing… But anyway, even though she's Aoki's girlfriend and all, she's always been right so you better not take lightly what she told you," Kimura explained.

I could only glance at Makunouchi and wonder what was going to happen. Where was that love going to come from and what about the surprise that I wasn't going to forget? I had to try my best not to go ahead of things.

"Kimura, the cat…" I said when I looked for something else to think about and noticed that I didn't see the cat anywhere near us.

"Oh yes! Right. We should go downstairs. The magazine is going to have a photo shoot and there'll be an article about this party in the next issue. You two should get going, too, 'cause the most interesting guys are the featherweight ones," Kimura said instead of replying to my question. "I'm sure it means you, too, Volg."

We didn't have anything against the suggestion so we followed Kimura back downstairs and went into a smaller room which was right next to the hall. Even before we stepped inside the room, we could hear the loud whoops.

"Cat fight, cat fight, cat fight…"

"What on earth does that mean?" Makunouchi asked turning to me but I didn't know what to say. I could only shrug.

"I think you'll understand when you see it…" Kimura mumbled and he was right.

Everyone let us get through easily to the part of the room that was lit by dozens of flashlights. And when we finally got there, Makunouchi stopped still. His expression changed entirely when he saw the ones who were being photographed at the moment. Naturally the other man was Sendou in his tiger costume, while the man dressed as a cat was still someone who I couldn't recognize. I had to admit it that I had honestly thought that the person wearing the cat costume was a woman. But now it seemed that he was also one of the boxers. The reason why the crowd was shouting "cat fight!" must have been their postures and costumes, and it certainly looked as though they were just about to hit each other. I wondered if that was the reason why Makunouchi looked so awed when he looked at them so attentively.

"It's Makunouchi and Volg! Get them in the picture as well!" someone yelled loudly.

"There ya're, come here! We've been waitin' for ya two! Can't miss this for anythin'!" Sendou gestured us to join them.

"Mi… Mi… Miya…ta-kun," I heard Makunouchi stuttering quietly beside me.

"Makunouchi, are you alright?" I had to put my paw on his shoulder. He was acting far too strange all of a sudden.

"Volg, ya're my rival, these days even more than back when we fought. And Makunouchi, his one an' only rival is dis kitty, right, Miyata?"

"If you call me 'kitty' for one more time, I'll honestly hit you," Miyata threatened shoving his fist really close to Sendou's face. But he didn't seem to be offended at all, Sendou just laughed and dragged me to stand next to him.

"And Makunouchi, how long are you planning to stay there and have that dumbfounded expression on your face?" Miyata directed his words to Makunouchi who still seemed rather stupefied. The longer he stayed like that, the more worried I felt.

"Ah… Yes," he said eventually with a feeble voice and walked up to Miyata. "Long time no see."

"I would appreciate it if you didn't look at me like that," I heard Miyata saying to Makunouchi. "I wasn't the one to choose this costume…"

But somehow I didn't think that his costume would have been the reason why Makunouchi had been so shocked. Whatever it was, I knew I would have to talk about it with him. Otherwise I wouldn't be able to stop worrying about him. However, first we were going to work a little, do something for our fans, the people who were supporting us. I got my picture taken with the boxers who I had fought with and who had been in the same weight class with me. There was quite a crowd when all of the featherweight boxers were being photographed as a group. And lastly I got to be in the same picture with Kimura and the grim reaper man, Mashiba, since I had moved up into the same weight class.

Right after taking those pictures Kimura looked so pale, his skin was nearly the same colour as the bandages around his body, that I had to follow him.

"Kimura… Are you alright?"

"Let me just say that I could be worse. One of Ippo's past opponents, called Sawamura, could have also been here. If he had been here, I would have felt even more pressured," he replied when we sat down to rest our feet for a while.

"Oh that man. Makunouchi won the bout, didn't he?" I recalled.

"Yeah, that's right! It was when you were here! Ippo's been working really hard ever since then. A lot has happened while you've been in America."

"Now Sawamura is also junior lightweight…" I hesitated.

"Yeah, he was for a while. That grim reaper lost his champion belt to Sawamura but then he was in an accident…" Kimura sighed deeply.

"Not boxing?" I frowned.

"I don't think so, not after that incident. But even so he could've easily come here, he must've been invited as well. For example Date hasn't boxed in a long time. These days he's a trainer."

"In Japan even more strong boxers," I stated turning to look at the young men who were presently in the limelight.

"I suppose so. Some of the new young guys look up to Ippo and want to find a way how to surpass him."

"A hard thing to do," I pointed out with a faint smile on my face.

"Yeah. People like us know it better than others. We'll just have to wait and see how far he can go."

"Makunouchi can do anything he wants. Puts his mind into it."

"Yes, exactly. He's really good at that," Kimura admitted and had an understanding smile on his face. It made me feel very good knowing that Makunouchi had people like Kimura close to him.

"Ah, suddenly I'm really tired," Makunouchi sighed when he approached us. It was enough to look at his face to see what he meant.

"And it's hot in here," Kimura said sweeping his forehead with the back of his hand that was covered in bandages.

"It is late. Want to go back home?" I asked.

"I think we could. If you don't mind?" Makunouchi asked me in return.

"I don't, not at all," I replied shaking my head.

"If you two are already leaving, I could come with you and go outside for a while. I really need some fresh air," Kimura said as he got up.

Before we left the room, we waved at Sendou who seemed to be having a blast. He certainly must have been one of the most energetic men that I had ever met, was what I was thinking when we went to pick up our overcoats.

-x-o-x-o-x-o-x-o-x-

"This's where you've been hiding!" Kimura yelled all of a sudden, almost right after we had stepped outside.

It was so dark that it took a while before I saw the person Kimura was talking to, but there he was, the black cat. When he cocked his head, the bell attached to the collar that he wore around his neck jingled.

"Are you planning to leave the party, too?" Kimura asked since the man dressed as a cat hadn't uttered a word.

"That's why you came out, huh?" was the reply that sounded rather bitter. At least to me it did.

"Ippo and Volg decided to leave. I'm not sure yet. But it's true that I'm sweating under these bandages and it makes me feel really uncomfortable…" Kimura explained haltingly.

"Kimura-san…" Makunouchi suddenly called his name.

"Yes, Ippo?"

"Why did you choose to be a mummy?" was Makunouchi's somewhat surprising question.

There was an awkward silence. I couldn't understand why. Neither did I know who I should have been looking at. I could only wonder what was going on because it must have been something I knew nothing about.

"Because… There was a time that… Someone once told me that I look sexy in bandages," was the quiet but seemingly honest reply which left us all silent for yet another moment.

"Is that so," Makunouchi broke the silence and he turned to look at me. "Volg-san, we better go now."

Those words sounded much more amazing than what they meant. Or then they simply meant much more than what they were supposed to mean. At the end of the day, I really didn't know what to think of the tone of his voice, the way he had said those words to me. I didn't want to lose the feeling they had given me and therefore I just nodded at the other two to excuse myself from their company. They both also settled for nodding, and after that I didn't look back but followed Makunouchi a few steps behind him.

-x-o-x-o-x-o-x-o-x-

All the time that we spent waiting to catch a free taxi, his paw was in mine. All the time we sat in the backseat of the taxi that finally picked us up, his paw was in mine. All the way to the front door of his home, his paw was in mine. But when we stood by the door, he let go of my paw. Just to take the paws off of his hands and gesture me to do the same.

"Volg-san," was everything he said before he wrapped his arms around me and stroked my back with his extremely warm hands.

For a second I wondered if it was because he was still drunk, or perhaps it was me who was drunk. At that point I couldn't tell the difference anymore. But he was hugging me and I hugged him back.

"I…" his words were muffled because he leaned on my chest.

"Yes?" I asked and I had to raise my other hand to ruffle his hair.

"I realized how much I had missed you," he replied raising his head, looking straight into my eyes. Even though his eyes seemed somewhat dizzy, the reason must have been something else than alcohol.

"I missed you, Makunouchi," I confessed from the bottom of my heart and it was a lot easier to say those words when I felt that they were going to be fully accepted.

"…I do not know why. But I worry about you now," I continued staring right into his eyes while I spoke. "Tell me?"

"Volg-san… I think I… Tonight I was surprised, just like Tomiko-san foretold… And I think I noticed something else as well," Makunouchi replied with that feeble voice I had heard earlier during that evening.

"Want to talk about it?" I asked and I couldn't help it that my heart had begun to beat faster.

"If you don't mind listening," he said and at the same time I felt him squeezing me a little tighter. I just nodded and smiled at him.

"Let's go inside and make some tea," Makunouchi suggested and we went through the front door, entering the hall after taking our shoes off.

"Sit down, Volg-san. I'll go and do the preparations," he told me and disappeared into the kitchen for a while. Soon after I had sat at the table, he came back with two cups and a teapot.

"Thank you," I said when he sat opposite to me, to wait for the water to boil. "So…?"

"Volg-san, you must have noticed it, too," Makunouchi started flimsily.

"You mean the cat?" I guessed. "Somehow unpleasant feeling?"

"You're right. But it wasn't the costume…" A slight blush appeared on his cheeks. "What we saw when we were upstairs…"

"I remember. You said Kimura's girlfriend, you mean that?"

Makunouchi nodded.

"Me too. It was dark. I thought it was a woman," I admitted.

"But… It was Miyata-kun."

I wondered if I was meant to say something but I didn't know what to say. I decided to wait for him to speak again.

"It… Ummm… It has nothing to do with me but… Didn't it seem like he was close to Kimura-san? And the way Miyata-kun danced…" He was obviously hesitating, almost desperately looking for the words to express what he was thinking about so seriously.

"We danced together. Just like them. Like a couple. Is that troublesome?" I asked gently.

"No!" he denied immediately. "Eh?! Like a…couple?"

"I thought so. Did you?"

"Volg-san…" he sighed and hung his head for a while before he got up to get the hot water for the tea.

When he came back from the kitchen and poured the water into the pot, I sensed how he must have been thinking really hard the reply to my question. There was no reason for me to urge him to do that. It would be better for me, too, if his reply was going to be an honest one.

We drank the tea in silence. But there was still no need to hurry. Although my expression had been quite a roundabout way to tell what I had been hiding within me, I thought that Makunouchi might have still understood a part of what I had meant.

From the corner of my eye I saw how he put his cup down on the table and he opened his mouth to say something.

"Is it possible?" was what he said after the long silence.

For a while I had to consider his words, but it was rather clear to me what he wanted to know.

"I think it is. It doesn't matter who, the feelings matter more," I tried to explain as simply as I could.

He nodded. Even though the steps were little, I knew that all of them were a part of the progress. Towards that wholehearted love, I thought to myself.

"Volg-san," Makunouchi called my name again getting up on his feet.

"Time for bed?" I asked hastily.

This time he shook his head and took a couple of steps toward me. He sat down on the floor next to me and put his hand on top of mine.

"May I…?" he asked looking down, avoiding my eyes on purpose.

"Yes," I replied gently.

The next thing I knew, his face was right in front of mine, getting closer, so close that our lips touched for a brief moment. Whatever had been his surprise, it couldn't have outdone the one I got right then. On my own I had figured that Makunouchi wasn't very good with words, perhaps kind of like how I wasn't very good with Japanese, not to mention English, so his way of expressing what he had wanted to tell me shouldn't have surprised me as much as it did. But even so it had been unexpected. Because I should have been the one to take that essential step forward, since I must have been thinking about doing that same thing for ages. But in the end, it was him. And I couldn't help but be happy that he had taken that step, all on his own.

When I looked at him closely, he was trembling but at the same time squeezing my hand tightly. His red cheeks glowed in the dim illumination of the room, he looked very cute.

"Makunouchi, this is my feeling," I said raising his chin softly with my free hand and brought our faces really close again. He must have been nervous as he shut his eyes very tightly just before I pressed my lips back on his. But he didn't escape the kiss, he didn't run away from my feelings for him, either. As a matter of fact, I noticed that he began to accept them and reply to them on his own pace.

After the kiss that had turned into an amiable cuddle, we didn't have to say anything to each other. Everything that we needed was to feel each other close together and look into each other's eyes. And feel the wholehearted love flow between us.

-the end-


End file.
